There are lots of terrific prison movies and Jules Dassin’s Brute Force (1947) is near the top of the list. It seems best known today for soft-spoken Hume Cronyn’s startlingly nasty turn as a sadistic prison guard, yet the film has many other rewards for its viewers, chief among them the fine work of cinematographer William Daniels and composer Miklos Rozsa.

The situation at Westgate prison is growing intolerable for its inmates because of a wishy-washy warden (Roman Bohnen) and the quiet but sadistic leader of the guards named Munsey (Hume Cronyn). Following the death of one of his friends, prisoner Joe Collins (Burt Lancaster) determines to break out or die trying. Meanwhile, a prison administrator warns the warden that strong discipline is needed to bring the prisoners into line, or else the warden will lose his job.

This powderkeg of a situation is dramatically visualized and photographed by director Dassin and cinematographer Daniels. Many of the images are memorably framed, such as the moment when prisoner Wilson is cornered by three others with hand-held flame guns in the machine shop, or when, near the end, another prisoner is strapped to a railroad flatbed and hurtled toward the guards waiting with a machine gun. Or the prison yard itself, populated with hundreds of angry prisoners, as seen from the high perspective of the guard tower. More than most other films of this ilk, Brute Force is visually stunning.

It is also dramatically powerful. Richard Brooks’ script is both sparse and taut. Dialogue is quick and to the point, while the actors are uniformly good — and a few are excellent: Art Smith, John Hoyt, and, of course, Cronyn. I always recall him as the nosy neighbor in Shadow of a Doubt (1943) or the poignant oldsters from the Cocoon duo and *batteries not included in the mid-1980s, so its always a treat to see Cronyn act so calmly malicious when I revisit this movie.

Its only weakness is the four flashbacks that explain why some of the men are jailed, but even these unnecessary scenes (used to work women into the story) are quick and to the point.

Brute Force seems to be overlooked when it comes to discussions of the great prison movies, yet to me it is among the best of its era and well worth remembering. My rating: ✰ ✰ ✰ ½.  (8:4).